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| Assam rebels kill scores on night of brutal attacks in Indian state | Assam rebels kill scores on night of brutal attacks in Indian state |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| At least 56 people, including children, have died in a series of militant attacks in Assam as the rebels intensified a long-running separatist campaign in the north-eastern state, according to Indian police. | |
| Witnesses said armed militants pulled villagers from their homes and shot them at point-blank range in a series of co-ordinated attacks carried out across the remote and volatile state on Tuesday. | Witnesses said armed militants pulled villagers from their homes and shot them at point-blank range in a series of co-ordinated attacks carried out across the remote and volatile state on Tuesday. |
| Assam, which borders Bhutan and Bangladesh, has a long history of often violent land disputes between the indigenous Bodo people, Muslim settlers from Bangladesh and rival tribes in the area. | Assam, which borders Bhutan and Bangladesh, has a long history of often violent land disputes between the indigenous Bodo people, Muslim settlers from Bangladesh and rival tribes in the area. |
| “This is one of the most barbaric attacks in recent times with the militants not even sparing infants,” the state’s chief minister, Tarun Gogoi, said. | “This is one of the most barbaric attacks in recent times with the militants not even sparing infants,” the state’s chief minister, Tarun Gogoi, said. |
| Police said 12 children were among those killed in the attacks, which they blamed on the outlawed National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB). The group has waged a violent campaign for decades, calling for a separate homeland for the people of the Bodo tribes, which are indigenous to India’s north-east. | |
| “As of now, 56 people are dead and 80 others are injured. At least 20 of them are in critical condition in hospitals,” police Insp Gen SN Singh told AFP. “Our teams are still trying to reach the remote areas to see if there are more bodies lying in houses or forests.” | “As of now, 56 people are dead and 80 others are injured. At least 20 of them are in critical condition in hospitals,” police Insp Gen SN Singh told AFP. “Our teams are still trying to reach the remote areas to see if there are more bodies lying in houses or forests.” |
| A curfew has been imposed in sensitive areas and the army is on standby, Singh said. One villager said the rebels were armed with sophisticated assault rifles and had come on foot. | A curfew has been imposed in sensitive areas and the army is on standby, Singh said. One villager said the rebels were armed with sophisticated assault rifles and had come on foot. |
| “I saw my wife and two sons being shot dead before my eyes,” said Anil Murmu, a 40-year-old survivor from the worst-hit village of Phulbari, where 30 people were killed. “I somehow managed to escape by hiding under the bed,” he told AFP by phone. | “I saw my wife and two sons being shot dead before my eyes,” said Anil Murmu, a 40-year-old survivor from the worst-hit village of Phulbari, where 30 people were killed. “I somehow managed to escape by hiding under the bed,” he told AFP by phone. |
| India’s prime minister, Narendra Modi, condemned the attacks as an act of cowardice and said the federal home minister would travel to Assam to assess the situation. | India’s prime minister, Narendra Modi, condemned the attacks as an act of cowardice and said the federal home minister would travel to Assam to assess the situation. |
| Police said recent talks initiated by the national government with one faction of the NDFB may have provoked the attacks. Some hardliners within the group opposed negotiations. | Police said recent talks initiated by the national government with one faction of the NDFB may have provoked the attacks. Some hardliners within the group opposed negotiations. |